CHENNAI: In a great piece of news for those afflicted by ‘Black Fungus’ due to COVID or any other medical condition, the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, (IIT Madras) today claimed that its researchers have developed 3D-printed face implants for such patients.
Around 50 implants, based on metal 3D or additive manufacturing, have already been done on patients from economically-weaker sections, the institute said in a statement.
IIT Madras researchers are identifying more patients who cannot afford costly imported implants and giving these implants free of cost under the campaign called #Right2Face.
To implement the initiative, IIT Madras has partnered with ZorioX Innovation Labs, a start-up founded by Dental Surgeons in Chennai, it said.
The outbreak of Black Fungus disease, also known as ‘Mucormycosis’, has been a cause of great concern in India as one of its most devastating effects is the loss of facial features, which can have a profound impact on a patient’s mental and emotional well-being.
Reports suggest that about 60,000 mucormycosis cases have been registered in India post-COVID, the statement said.
The fungus responsible for mucormycosis can invade the tissues of the face, causing necrosis and disfigurement.
In severe cases, patients may lose their nose, eyes, or even their entire face.
Furthermore, the loss of vital organs can affect a patient’s ability to breathe, eat, and communicate, making it difficult to perform everyday activities.
Reconstructive surgery is a viable solution for patients who have lost their facial features due to black fungus disease.
These procedures involve the reconstruction of the nose, eyes, and other facial structures using a variety of techniques, such as skin grafts, tissue expansion, and microvascular surgery.
These procedures can help restore the patient’s appearance and function, allowing them to lead a more normal life.
However, patient-specific implants and procedures are expensive, rendering them inaccessible for people from weaker sections.
Elaborating on this technology developed by IIT Madras, Dr. Murugaiyan Amirthalingam, Associate Professor at the Institute’s Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, said, “Additive manufacturing (3D printing) has already emerged as a viable and cost effective, net shape manufacturing process for low volume production of complex body implants with specific custom-made designs.”
He added that extensive research activities are already being carried out in IIT Madras to commercialise this technology for printing patient-specific implants in stainless steel, Ti-6Al-4V and Co-Cr-Mo alloys.
“Using unique in-house algorithms, a patient’s MRI/CT data is converted to printable CAD format and custom implants are printed from medical-grade titanium using an indigenously-built laser powder bed facility in IIT Madras. This #Right2Face initiative aims to help poor and needy patients with patient-specific custom maxillofacial implants to treat black fungus patients,” Dr Amirthalingam said.
Speaking about this initiative, Dr. Karthik Balaji, CEO, ZorioX Innovation labs, said, “Post-Covid there has been an increase in number of black fungus cases. To save the lives of the patient, a lot of facial bones had to be removed. These patients are mostly breadwinners of the family and are now confined within four walls because of their facial deformity.”
He said ‘Right2face’ movement is aimed to help these needy patients in association with the oral and maxillofacial surgeons to restore the faces and give them back their smile.
What makes this initiative unique is that IIT Madras team is able to print the implant exactly to match the patients’ face.
The Researchers get the patients’ CT Data from which we design a specific implant that will suit the patient perfectly. IIT Madras is among the first to print such implants for black fungus patients specifically.
Zoriox Innovations Labs, with whom IIT Madras has a tie-up, takes part of the surgical procedures while IIT Madras handles the Design and 3D Printing.
The implants are made of medical-grade titanium, which are commonly used for reconstructive procedures.
